Farmers protest outside MP’s residence

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, July 21

Farmer activists, under the banner of Kisan Majdoor Sangarsh Committee, staged a protest outside the residence of Lok Sabha member Gurjit Singh Aujla over the issuance of three ordinances related to agriculture last month.

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The government has issued three notifications; Essential Commodities (Amendment) Ordinance, Farming Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance.

Farmer activists claimed that instead of empowering the farmers, the three ordinances would in fact result in corporatisation of agriculture and exploitation of farmers. Kisan-Majdoor Sangarsh Committee General Secretary Sarwan Singh Pandher said, “Our purpose to protest outside the residence of Congress MP is to press upon him to oppose the three bills whenever it comes to voting in the Parliament after the duration of ordinance is over.”

He said BJP leaders were giving statements and farmers were being misguided by the vested interests. “We want to make it clear that nobody is misguiding us. We understand these ordinances and know that these are not in the interest of farmers,” said Pandher.

Another farmer leader Gurbachan Singh Chabba said, “Though the MSP for maize is around Rs 1,800 per quintal, it was sold for merely Rs 1,200 in Punjab. The government claims to provide MSP of a number of crops but in Punjab it is practically available on rice and wheat only. In many other states, MSP is given on other crops but not on wheat and rice.” He demanded that each and every farmer in every state gets the MSP for all the crops notified by the government.

Meanwhile, Gurjit Singh Aujla stated that the Congress party had also opposed the three ordinances. He said farmers should protest outside the homes of SAD and BJP leaders and ask them to explain their position.